Sermon James Chapter 1

Watch this sermon live on 11/9/22 at 7:00 PM EDT: Live Stream
Video will be posted here once the sermon has been recorded.

Sermon Slides for Sermon James Chapter 1: [download id=”15069″]
Printable PDF for Sermon James Chapter 1: [download id=”15068″]

[2] The title of the sermon: “JAMES CHAPTER 1.”

We are now starting our verse by verse study into the Book of James.
Let’s start there in verse 1.

[3] James 1:1 James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad, greeting.

We know that a man named James wrote this book. Could be James the brother of Jesus.
Could be James the brother of John, sons of Zebedee, or the sons of thunder.
I don’t think it matters. We know James, a servant of God and of Jesus Christ, wrote this book.

When God tells me that His servant wrote this book, I listen.

This is Holy Scripture written by the Holy Ghost.
This book is written TO the 12 tribes which are scattered abroad. This speaks of the 12 tribes of Israel.
This man is of one of the 12 tribes of Israel. He is writing to his brethren.

[4] Matthew 10:2-4 Now the names of the twelve apostles are these; The first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother; 3 Philip, and Bartholomew; Thomas, and Matthew the publican; James the son of Alphaeus, and Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddaeus; 4 Simon the Canaanite, and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed him.

How many James are there in this list of the 12 apostles. There are 2 here.
We’ve been through the 12 apostles before, but we see James the son of Zebedee and James the son of Alphaeus.

[5] Galatians 1:17-19 Neither went I up to Jerusalem to them which were apostles before me; but I went into Arabia, and returned again unto Damascus. 18 Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem to see Peter, and abode with him fifteen days. 19 But other of the apostles saw I none, save James the Lord’s brother.

I haven’t put a ton of study time into this, but as of right now, I think the James writing this is the brother of Jesus.
But, again, this James is a servant of God. He knows what he’s talking about. This is perfect Scripture.
Let’s go to the next verse in James Chapter 1.

[6] James 1:2-3 My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; 3 Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.

Notice that James calls these people his brethren.
James says this same phrase, “my brethren”, “my beloved brethren,” or “brethren” 15 times in this book.
And he mentions faith along with this many times. He writes this book to people with faith in Jesus Christ.

What does this mean to have faith in Jesus Christ? This means you put your trust in Jesus.

This means you believe in Jesus. You know He is the Son of God. You know He can do all things.
You know He is the Savior of the world.
You know He died on the cross, was buried, and arose from the dead.
You know that Jesus alone is “THE” sacrifice for sins and the only way you’ll be saved is by faith in Him.

This book is CLEARLY written to brethren of James who are saved. These are children of Israel who are saved.

These are not the Pharisees who didn’t believe in God. Pharisees believe in their works.
So-called “Christians” who believe in a works based salvation are not saved.
Children of Israel who thought their circumcision saved them are not the recipients of this book.

“My brethren, count it ALL JOY when ye fall into divers temptations.”

“Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.” Again, these people have faith.
If you don’t have in Jesus Christ, it’s time to get it now. He is the rock.
Who else are you going to place your trust in besides your Creator who gave you this life?

Listen, before we go any further in the Book of James, make sure you understand this.

100%, without a doubt, this book is written to people who already have everlasting life.
Everlasting life is everlasting and it doesn’t go away. God gives you this gift of everlasting life.
At the moment you believe in Jesus Christ, you get this gift that lasts forever and never goes away.
This is God’s promise. We believe Him. He doesn’t deceive us or lie to us.

God never says that life will be perfectly easy for you. He says the opposite. Life is tough. We will be tried.

We will be tried or tempted by God for our good, and we will be tempted with evil by Satan.
God doesn’t tempt us with evil. Understand that.
If you’re tempted with something evil, let’s say lusting after women, God didn’t tempt you with this.
If you’re tempted to take drugs, it’s not God doing this.

The trying of your faith, though, is from God. And this works patience. You must be patient to pass the test.

When you fall into divers temptations, count it ALL JOY. Understand this.
Let’s say you fall into some sickness. Have patience. Don’t lose your faith in God. Stick with Him.
Pass the test. Keep going. Don’t give up. Don’t quit. Here’s a test of faith that God gave Abraham.

[7] Genesis 22:1-2 And it came to pass after these things, that God did tempt Abraham, and said unto him, Abraham: and he said, Behold, here I am. 2 And he said, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of.

Abraham had great faith in God, and he passes this trying of his faith. Don’t over react to things.
Calm down. Have faith in God. Think about what’s happening. Your faith will be tried by God.
He’s trying to help you, and make you stronger. COUNT IT ALL JOY when this happens!

[8] Luke 6:22-23 Blessed are ye, when men shall hate you, and when they shall separate you from their company, and shall reproach you, and cast out your name as evil, for the Son of man’s sake. 23 Rejoice ye in that day, and leap for joy: for, behold, your reward is great in heaven: for in the like manner did their fathers unto the prophets.

A test of your faith is speaking out for God even when you know people will hate you for it.
People have been conditioned by this world, the media, the news, and celebrities to hate you when you love God.
They will call you all kinds of names, and they will hate you. “Blessed are ye.” Let’s rejoice! ALL JOY.

[9] James 1:4 But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.

Jesus Christ went through all of these trials and tribulations. God is testing you the same way.
Jesus passed them all perfectly. Have patience, similar to Job as well, and you will come out as gold.
You’ve been tried. Have the patience, and come though this trial. Faith saves you in these trials.
Don’t try to do it all on your own. You’ll fail. Let patience have her perfect work.
And you will be perfect and entire, wanting nothing. Perfect here doesn’t mean sinless.

This just means you lack nothing. If God is your provider who you trust in for all things, you lack nothing.

If you’re starving, thirsty, broken, and yet you have faith in God, you will lack nothing.
Have patience. Work hard for God even through the tough times. He will bring you through.

[10] Psalm 40:1 To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David. I waited patiently for the LORD; and he inclined unto me, and heard my cry.

James is writing to saved believers or children of God.
If you’re saved, completely broken, helpless, patient, trying to follow God, and you cry to God, what do you think He’ll do?

If your son or daughter was trying to do good, crying, scared, and looking for your help, what would you do?

The Lord inclined unto me, and heard my cry. If you hate God, He won’t hear you cry.
If everything else is more important to you than God, He won’t hear your cry.
If you only go to God when you’re about to die, you better hope He hears you crying.
Why don’t you try seeking God when things are going good too? Seek God, follow God, be patient.

[11] James 1:5 If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.

I lack wisdom. I need more of it. I love wisdom. I want to do the right things and make the right decisions.
For example, I want to win souls to Jesus Christ. I want to win as many as I possibly can.
I want to do so with efficiency. I want to get the job done. I want to work for God.
I want to do what He says. I want to baptize people. I want to teach them His words. I need more wisdom.
Right now, I ask God for more wisdom. You should do the same right now.

God gives wisdom to all men liberally or freely and with great abundance. He wants to give you wisdom.

But, why do you want wisdom? Do you love money more than wisdom?
If you could win the lottery or receive more wisdom from God, which would you choose today?
Don’t stop in verse 5. We need to take a close look at verse 6 if we want more wisdom.

[12] James 1:6 But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed.

We ask for wisdom IN FAITH. We have believed in the Lord Jesus Christ.
For example, if you parrot around James Chapter 2 and act like works are required for salvation, you sure aren’t going to receive ANY WISDOM from God.
You have no faith in Him.
If you can’t BELIEVE IN the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, you won’t receive wisdom.
If you think Jesus only died for a certain number of people, like you, and not your neighbor, then you will receive no wisdom from God.

We ask for wisdom in faith, and we know for sure that God will give us this wisdom.

We know for sure that God has already saved us because He says, “And I give unto them eternal life, and they shall NEVER PERISH.”
The same way that we are sure about salvation, we are sure, IN FAITH, that God will give us wisdom.

We don’t waver. We trust God and His words. If there’s anyone we can trust, it’s God.

I don’t question Him. Don’t waver in your faith. Don’t be like a wave of the sea driven and tossed.
Keep the faith always. Always remember that God is the Almighty, and you aren’t. Trust Him.
If you pay attention in the Bible, God will show up when you’ve just about reached your limit.

When you’ve had enough, He shows up and saves you out of many things.

You must know that He is taking care of you and don’t ever forget that.
You won’t get everything you want, but you will get everything you need. Blessing or punishment?
You’ll get it. And I will take anything from God, blessing or punishment. I trust Him in both.
But, please, God, be merciful to me, a sinner. Humble yourself to God. You need Him.

[13] James 1:7-8 For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord. 8 A double minded man is unstable in all his ways.

If you waver IN THE LORD like that wave that is tossed around, don’t expect to receive wisdom.
And don’t expect to receive anything of the Lord. It’s very important to be saved by grace through faith.
And then it’s very important to not waver. We want to serve the Lord.
I want my name, as James has his name at the beginning, to be followed by SERVANT OF GOD.

What title do I want? If you know me, I don’t like titles for myself. You can just call me Josh.

But I would like, servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ to be after my name.
Let’s all put our faith in God and Jesus Christ. First step. Let’s not waver in that faith ever.
And let’s serve the Lord. When we wake up each day, we ask: “What does God want me to do?”
I can tell you. Win some people to Christ. Know the Gospel. Preach the Gospel. God takes care of you.

Preach faith. Your faith grows. You don’t waver. Works is not faith. Faith is not works.

A double minded man is UNSTABLE in all his ways. A man who preaches salvation by works is unstable.
He’s wavering all over the place. I’ve been there. Not any more. Jesus is now my rock.
The only reason I’ll go to heaven is because of Him alone. Not me. I decided to trust in Him.
That’s all you have to do. And don’t ever stop. Don’t be a double minded man.

[14] James 4:7-8 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8 Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.

Don’t do the works of the devil and also do the works of God. Let’s stop those things.
Let’s stop worrying about what we want and start doing what God asks.
If we don’t, we’re double minded. We always have something pulling us the other way.
Don’t let things pull you away from God. We think we need these other things that we don’t need.
We put these “NEEDS” into our own heads. We don’t need these things. We need God.
We need to do what He says. Forget the other things and be single minded with our mind on God alone.

[15] James 1:9-10 Let the brother of low degree rejoice in that he is exalted: 10 But the rich, in that he is made low: because as the flower of the grass he shall pass away.

Be a brother of low degree. Don’t spend your life trying to be of high degree or power or riches.
When I do a job, I just want to be paid a fair price. I’m not looking to get rich.
Wouldn’t it be nice if everyone was not looking to be rich and powerful? Just be fair.
Hey, we can be this way. Judge righteous judgement. Don’t cheat people so you can be high and lifted up.

The rich will be made low. You know, the rich man was in hell.

How hard is it for them that trust in riches to enter into the kingdom of God!”
Don’t trust in your earthly riches. The rich shall pass away.
No matter how high and mighty you think you are, you’re still going to die.
Make sure you get that when you think you’re all powerful. Death will humble you.
Hell will humble you. It will be too late to realize that God is great and you aren’t.
You might as well understand that FACT right now. We are not good. We are sinners. We need His mercy.

I can’t stand churches filled with people of high degree. Most of the people go there because of the people there.

They don’t want to go because there are people of low degree who sin souls to Christ.
They go because there are people of high degree and they want to benefit from those people.
They don’t realize that God is the HIGH DEGREE.
He sits in the heavens, and he laughs at you when you go to church to gain money.
You don’t worship Him. You worship money. And He’s watching. You will be made low and pass away.

[16] James 1:11 For the sun is no sooner risen with a burning heat, but it withereth the grass, and the flower thereof falleth, and the grace of the fashion of it perisheth: so also shall the rich man fade away in his ways.

A rich man is likened to the grass and its flowers. The sun is risen with a burning heat.
The grass withers. The flower or the beauty of the grass falls.
The grace of the fashion of the flowers perish. The rich man has his ways.
He might seem like someone you want to follow.

For example, Jeff Bezos, Amazon CEO, is teaching how easy it is to get rich. People want to be like him.

He might seem awesome to people. But he’s just like a flower of the grass. No one will remember him.
Do you remember the dandelions that grew in your yard in the Summer of 2020? No, you don’t.
Rich people love to gather and rake in all the money for themselves.
“It’s all about me and how much I can get from others.” This is why the rich man fades away.
They only care for themselves and their riches. They learn, though, that this is all vanity.

Riches are actually worthless when death comes. Money can’t save you.

A 5 million dollar home is not alive. It can’t rescue you from death and hell.
A new car can’t do much for you when it comes to death. You can’t outrun death with a Ferrari.
Riches can’t conquer death. Jesus can conquer death. And He did.
If you want to be remembered, it won’t be because you had riches. All of that fades away.
You will only be remembered because you believed in Jesus Christ.

So, this world teaches you to go after riches. God does not. We do not seek to build riches here on earth.

We seek to build riches in heaven by winning souls to Jesus Christ through His words and His Gospel.
If you believe this, then let’s win souls to Christ and not look to build up our riches.
And stop talking about it. Do it. Do you have faith? Show me your faith. Take some action.

[17] James 1:12 Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him.

Don’t be confused about the crown of life. Some people will equate a crown of life with eternal life.
They will say that the crown of life equals salvation. Enduring temptation does not equal salvation.
When you are tried by God, you don’t gain salvation by passing the trial or test.
Enduring temptation is hard work. Going through a trial is very difficult and TRYING. It’s hard work.
We are not saved by works. A crown of life is a crown of life.

When you endure temptation or tried, you shall receive the crown of life.

When you love God, you keep His commandments. He promises you the crown of life.
Only people with everlasting life already will receive a crown of life. Why? They endure temptations.
They go through tribulation. The phrase crown of life is seen only one other time in the Bible.

[18] Revelation 2:10 Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life.

God wants us to go through trials and tribulations.
False preachers will say that God would never send us through tribulation or through the tribulation.
This is the church at Smyrna, a Gentile church.
False preachers will say, “Only the Jews will go through the tribulation.”
The truth is that tribulation or the tribulation is not God’s wrath upon you.

Job didn’t have God’s wrath upon him. But God does allow us to be tried and tempted, but not with sin.

He tests our faith in Him. I’ve had these trials, and I’ve failed them many times.
Sometimes I’ve passed. I’ve probably failed more than I’ve passed. Not good. Try me some more.
Why? So I can get better at this. But please don’t kill me yet. I want to live. I want to win souls to Christ.
When we endure tribulation, we receive a crown of life. God gives this to us when we endure.
The crown of life does not equal everlasting life and enduring temptations is not required to be saved.
If it were, salvation would be of works. And we know for sure that salvation is not of works.

[19] James 1:13-14 Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man: 14 But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed.

God doesn’t hire the drug dealers that are out there on the streets.
God doesn’t tempt you to smoke cigarettes or marijuana. Both are wicked drugs.
Both will kill you. Yes, there are much worse things such as cocaine, meth, heroine, and fentanyl.

But, be aware that cigarettes, marijuana, and alcohol kill many people every day.

They are very dangerous. God doesn’t tempt you with these things of darkness.
He doesn’t say it’s good to smoke marijuana in the Bible. It’s evil. It’s wicked. Be sober He says.

Did you know alcohol kills about 3 times the number of people than all other drugs combined?

So, if you think alcohol is okay, I would think again. “But it’s legal!” I don’t care. It’s evil and wicked.
Because it’s legal, it kills more people. As they legalize more drugs, they will kill more people too.
Keep legalizing all the evil things such as drugs and abortion and more people will die and go to hell.
God isn’t doing these things. The powers of evil are doing these things.

God tempts you or tries your faith. He doesn’t tempt us with evil.

We are only tempted with evil because of our flesh. We are drawn away because of our own lust.
We are enticed because of our own lust. We want something really bad. We think it’s good for us.
We think it helps us to feel better. To relax. To calm down. To have a good time.
“If we only had some of this or some of that, we would be better or feel better.”
So-called “doctors” prescribe drugs because they think they are helping you to feel better.
They will prescribe marijuana to help people feel better. You don’t have to take all of those drugs.

Men and woman lust after each other. We don’t have to do these things. God says it is good for us to marry.

Get a husband or a wife of the opposite sex, and stop lusting after others. You can stop.
God doesn’t tempt us with any of these things. Fight against these things by walking in the Spirit.
When you feel lust for something is coming on, get your Bible out. Win the battle.
Listen to psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs. Not Hillsong. Not Bethel music. Not Pentecostal music.

[20] James 1:15-16 Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death. 16 Do not err, my beloved brethren.

When you’re going through a trial that is not about evil things, this could be from God.
Or, it could be because you did something to cause it as well. God id not tempting you to sin.
If you sin, it’s because of your own lust. And you allow your flesh to win. And you sin.
The wages of sin is death. The end of sin is death. Death comes closer and closer as we sin.
Remember that and don’t sin. “Do not err, my beloved brethren.”

[21] James 1:17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.

God knows how to give good gifts. The crown of life is a good gift for those who endure trials.
I would like to have a crown of life. Wouldn’t you? We must endure by faith.
These good gifts come down from the Father of lights. NOT OF DARKNESS.
He is the light that shines in the darkness. He doesn’t vary like we do. He is the rock.
He cannot be moved as we are moved. He doesn’t change things on us.
He gives us the truth, and the truth endures forever. If He changed it, then the truth wouldn’t be truth.

Other gifts He gives us are this life, everlasting life, a new body, a crown of glory, a crown of life.

A mansion in heaven. The indwelling of the Holy Spirit. Citizenship in His kingdom.
A reservation in heaven. He has so many good gifts to give us. PERFECT GIFTS.
When we do what He asks, He gives us more rewards and treasures in heaven.

[22] James 1:18 Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.

We are creatures or creations of God. We came from His words. He speaks. He creates.
With the word of truth, He begat us of His own will. We simply believe His words.
That’s the difference between us and the people who hate God. We believe Him.
They don’t. We are a new creation because we trust Him. He saves our soul.

[23] Ephesians 1:12-14 That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ. 13 In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, 14 Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.

We are the new creature because old things are passed away. The Holy Spirit indwells us.
God begat us of His own will. His will is for all of His creatures to be saved.
Simply believe in Him. And then one day He will even give you a new body at the first resurrection.

[24] James 1:19-20 Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath: 20 For the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God.

Because God gives us perfect gifts and begat us of His own will and His own works, be swift to hear.
Be slow to speak. Be slow to wrath. Because God is so good, do these things for Him.
Understand what He’s done for you. Be thankful to Him. And now do something for Him.
God’s wrath is different than our wrath. He is always under control. He knows what He’s doing.
We don’t. “For the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God.” Watch your wrath.

[25] James 1:21 Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness, and receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls.

For all of these reasons we are discussing, lay apart all filthiness. Get rid of it out of your life.
Yes, I said to get rid of it all out of your life. Get the great abundance of naughtiness out of your life.
Anything that is sin needs to stop. Why? Because God has saved you and done so much for you.
Think of the life you live. Anything that is not of God needs to leave.
Replace all of these things with something new in your life.

How about receiving God’s word in your heart? Receive His words with meekness and humility.

Make His words a part of you. Join them to your heart. Write them on the tables of your heart.
His words are able to save your souls. You have everlasting life, but His words can also save you now.
They will give you more life. So why not read your Bible more? Replace TV with the Bible.
Replace other things with a good church. Replace other things with winning souls to Christ.
Forget the other stuff. Get all the sin out of your life because it’s filthy. Replace it with goodness.

[26] James 1:22 But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.

It’s very important to do more than just read the Bible, hear sermons, and listen to preaching.
It’s very important to take what you’ve learned from God’s words and do it.
You can learn the Bible, hear the words all day long, and you’ll be doing good.
But will you actually apply these things in your life? Don’t be hearers only.

If so, you deceive yourself. You might understand that it’s believing in Jesus Christ that saves you.

But have you actually believed in Jesus Christ? Understanding the Gospel doesn’t save you.
This is why it’s so important to actually DO WHAT GOD SAYS. Jesus says, “Believe in me. Trust in me.”
“Have faith in me.” Jesus commands this. But have you DONE IT? Are you a hearer and a doer?
Jesus says to preach the Gospel to every creature. You know this. You hear this. But are you doing it?
Don’t deceive yourself into thinking you’re doing good by only hearing. Put it into action.

You know that it’s good to pray for others. You know it’s good to study the Bible. But, are you doing these things?

Do you actually want people to be saved? Do you actually want God to help other people?
Do you actually seek after wisdom? Or do you just hear these things and understand they are good?
Do you see the difference? BE YE DOERS OF THE WORD. This profits others when we do what God says.
We are saved already. How can we not care about others? Jesus died for all. He cared about all.

[27] James 4:17 Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.

We know what to do, but we don’t do it. This is filthiness. This is wickedness. This is sin.
Why would we call Jesus, “LORD,” and not do what He says? Hear the word of God and keep His words.
We love Him in this way. When we do what He says, we love Him greatly. Show Him you love Him.

For example, if my children love me, then show me. I show my children that I love them.

I take care of them. I work hard for them. I purchase their food, clothes, and give them a bed each night.
And I tell them constantly that I love them. I hug them most days many times per day.
I put my love for them into action. Pam does the same for them.

I was shoveling rock the other day. Callie comes out and helps me without me asking her to help.

This shows me that she loves me and cares enough to help me. It’s time to show people the love.
The best way to show love for people is to give them the Gospel. There is no greater love than this.
Jesus gave His life for us. Tell people so they can be saved. If not, do you really love them?

God shows you that He loves you every day. He works hard. He is not lazy. He takes care of you.

He shows you the love He has for you. He’s done more for you than anyone else combined times a billion.
He gave you life. He keeps you alive. He feeds you. He clothes you. He gives you water to drink.
Now, show His love to others. This is what He wants us to do.

[28] James 1:23-24 For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: 24 For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was.

Don’t forget that you are a saved man or woman by faith in Jesus Christ.
Now He says to go do what He says to do because this is love. This is how you love your neighbor.
Love is preaching against sin. Love is giving the Gospel. Love is praying for others.
Love is seeking after wisdom from God because this wisdom will help others.

Don’t forget God saved you. You are a new creation in Christ Jesus.

Don’t turn that new man into a reflection in the glass that just disappears.
Actually do something with the faith that you have. If not, you aren’t helping anyone else.
God helped you. Now you go and help someone else.

[29] James 1:25 But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.

This verse is the opposite of doing nothing for God. If you want to work for God, do what He says.
Don’t make things up. For example, the pursuit of earthly riches is not equal to working for God.
We are to pray NOT to be rich. We are to pray NOT to be poor.
I just want to be average and in the middle somewhere. I don’t want to be poor. I don’t want to be rich.
This follows and aligns with God’s words. We need to read His words to understand more.

For example, we don’t lend money to others at high rates of interest. We don’t attack the poor.

We don’t take advantage of widows and orphans. This is pure evil.
There’s so many things in this Bible that we need to be doing. Not just hearing BUT doing.
Open a King James Bible, LOOK INTO THE PERFECT LAW OF LIBERTY, and continue therein.
You are free to do everything in this Bible that God asks you to do.

There is no limit to doing what God says. You can win as many souls to Christ as you want. There’s no limit.

You can go to a good church 7 days a week and gather together with believers. No limit.
Continue in the things of God. Do not continue in evil. Don’t forget what you’ve heard today.
So many people will love a sermon, but they soon forget everything they heard.
They go back to their normal ways. NO. We need to stop doing that and change things NOW.
Be a doer. Get it done. Work hard for God. “This man shall be blessed in his deed.”

[30] James 1:26 If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man’s religion is vain.

Bridle your tongue means to stop lies, backbiting, gossip, or anything else that profits nothing.
If you’re preaching the Gospel, teaching God’s words, preaching against sin, there is no limit.
Don’t spread your religious tradition that doesn’t equate to God’s words.
If you have traditions that match with God’s words, then do them.
If it’s a tradition of yours to go to church 3 times a week, that’s a good tradition.

But don’t come up with your own religion. Don’t be a Pharisee.

Don’t deceive yourself into thinking you are worshipping God when you aren’t.
If you go to church because you love how the music makes you feel, you deceive yourself.
Women do this more than men.
I heard an ignorant worship leader say that he measure his success by how many people are crying.
That’s what he thinks the worship of God is all about. Emotions and crying.

[31] Malachi 2:13 And this have ye done again, covering the altar of the LORD with tears, with weeping, and with crying out, insomuch that he regardeth not the offering any more, or receiveth it with good will at your hand.

We don’t worship God by crying everywhere. We don’t worship God by crying out, “God, where are you?”
“Show us your power, God. Why aren’t you here showing us your power?” And then everyone cries.
Maybe you’ve deceived yourself. Your feelings are not the worship of God.

We worship God by studying His words and preaching His words. We love His words.

Keep on with your crying. You’re deceived. Your religion is in vain.
If you go to a church, like Southeast Christian church or Shelby Christian church, that teaches water baptism saves you, your religion is worthless.

[32] James 1:27 Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.

We know we are to visit the fatherless and widows. God tells us to do this. This is pure religion.
When we do what God says, this is pure religion. But, do we do this?
When they are afflicted, we are to visit them. Where are they? We go out and find them.
We knock on doors. We see kids in the neighborhood. We give them the Gospel.

We have the internet now too. Most people all over the world have a phone. Reach them through You Tube.

Make your own Gospel videos. Get them out to people who need to hear them.
We can reach people now on the other side of the world.
We need to do what God says and keep ourselves from sin. Don’t believe everything the world tells you.
God doesn’t love everyone no matter what. God isn’t okay with what Joe Biden says is okay.

Most people in this country trust what Joe Biden says is right and wrong versus what God says is right and wrong.

Others trust what the Supreme Court says is right and wrong. Don’t. Keep yourself unspotted.
Trust what God says is right and wrong. He sits in the heavens. The actual Supreme Court is in heaven.
The actual holy Jerusalem is in heaven. We seek heaven. We seek God. Act like it. Do what He says.

Let’s pray.

Are You 100% Sure
You’re Going To Heaven?

Latest Posts